Heartbreakers and Heroes

by Box Set

  “What in the hell are you talking about? I haven’t hooked up with anyone—”

  “So the first one you try out your charms on is the girl who gave it up so easy? I was a kid with a crush then. Now I know the difference between a hook up and something real.”

  “And you’re looking for something real?” he asked.

  “Damn straight.”

  She burst out of his house and he stood in the kitchen for a while, just staring off and thinking.

  Bash had a life in L.A. and had no interest in getting serious about settling down. Besides, he figured when he finally did, it would be with someone who understood his job and all the time it took up.

  Bash left the house right after her and found himself in his car, driving down the road toward Wilson’s Garage. With any luck, he’d be catching his dad before his second beer, and maybe he’d be in a forgiving mood.

  Not that his dad was completely innocent. He’d never gotten behind Bash’s dream of leaving town and being an actor, telling him it was a bunch of foolish bullshit. That he needed to consider mechanic school, so when his dad bought Wilson’s, he could rename it Valentine’s Garage and pass it down to Bash when he died.

  But Bash hadn’t wanted his dad’s life and when he’d told him that, rather colorfully, his dad had kicked him out and told him not to bother coming back.

  Bash parked in front of the garage, surprised by the changes to the old cement block building.

  Especially the name on the sign.

  He climbed out of his car and headed for the stairs on the side of the garage that led to the upstairs apartment door. If his dad had bought the garage, would he still be living here? He’d always told Bash that after his mom left, they didn’t need much more than the two-bedroom loft, but if he owned the business, couldn’t he afford a better place to live?

  Bash knocked on the door and waited. Footsteps echoed inside as someone drew closer.

  It opened up and his dad stared out at him, his eyes widening for a split second before his face snapped back into the familiar scowl he was famous for.

  “Bash.”

  “Hey, pop. Sorry to drop by so late.”

  “Late? You mean late at night or twelve years late?”

  Bash gritted his teeth at his dad’s sarcasm. “You were the one who told me not to come back.”

  Bash noticed the tick in Samuel’s jaw. “So why did you?”

  Bash laughed bitterly. “You know what? I have no idea. I thought maybe you would mellow out in your old age, but I guess I was wrong. See ya.”

  “You’re still a sensitive little shit, aren’t you?” his dad called after him.

  Bash stopped halfway down the stairs. “Yeah, I guess having a dick for a dad will do that to a guy.”

  Samuel seemed to be measuring him up. “Well, you drove all the way over here. Least I can do is get you a fucking beer.”

  He disappeared out of the doorway and Bash climbed back up the stairs and inside the apartment, closing the door behind him. It still looked the same, the dingy leather couch and stools at the counter where they’d eaten their meals.

  Samuel came back into the room with two beer bottles and handed him one.

  “Thanks. So, when did you buy Wilson’s?”

  “A few years after you left. Figured you’d need something to fall back on when being a star didn’t pan out.”

  “Except it did pan out. I could retire now, and still have enough money for my grandkids to live on.”

  His dad didn’t seem impressed. “Well, good for you.”

  Bash’s skin pricked with anger at his dad’s la di fucking da tone.

  “You seriously can’t be even a little bit proud of me? I mean, not very many people find the success I have. It’s competitive as hell. That doesn’t merit even a ‘good job’ from you?”

  His dad took a long pull of his beer before answering. “Being paid to look pretty isn’t like having a real job. It’s not like you save orphans and shit from burning buildings.”

  Actually, in his movie Heatwave, he’d played a firefighter who had saved a bunch of orphans from a burning building. Had his dad seen it and was making a joke?

  “Are you fucking with me?”

  “No, why? Is it so hard to believe that not everyone wants to kiss your ass?”

  Well, between his dad and Ashlynn, there were at least two people in the world who didn’t seem to give a shit about what he did for a living.

  “I don’t need my ass kissed, but it would be nice to at least get a little encouragement for you once in a dozen years.”

  Samuel stared at him hard. “If you’re looking for validation that you made the right life choice, you’re not going to get it from me. You might have money, but from what I’ve seen on the television, you don’t have much else. You got real friends in L.A.? Family?”

  “Who are you to preach to me about family? You threw me out—”

  Samuel’s face turned an ugly shade of violet. “And you thought you were better than your old man. You forget that I was the one who stayed, who took care of you and raised you the best I could. But you were just like your mama, always thinking about yourself and your wants and needs—”

  “Don’t fucking bring her into this! This is about you and me, and how I didn’t want to end up a bitter, lonely old man like you!”

  Bash waited for his dad to throw one of his clenched fists, the only sound in the quiet apartment was their heavy breathing.

  Then the front door opened behind Bash and he turned to find a blond woman who appeared to be in her mid-thirties come through the door balancing two grocery sacks, her obvious pregnant belly popping out in front.

  “Hey, Sam, everything okay?” she said.

  “Baby, I told you to call me when you got here and I would come down to get the bags.” His dad pushed past him and took the sacks from the woman, dropping a kiss on her rosy cheek. “Now, sit your ass down and put your feet up.”

  The woman smiled so lovingly at his dad that Bash couldn’t seem to find his voice. Then, she turned the beam on him and stepped forward with her hand out. “You must be Sebastian. I’m Jenna.”

  Taking her hand, he swallowed. “Nice to meet you. Sorry for all the yelling.”

  “That’s okay, you should hear us go at it when your father is being a stubborn ass.”

  “I heard that,” Samuel called from the kitchen.

  “I meant for you to.” She sat down on the couch with a groan and kicked off her shoes and socks. He noticed her swollen ankles as she put them up on the coffee table and when she caught him staring, she said, “Damn things won’t stop swelling. Dr. Marks keeps following me around, checking my blood pressure. She’s worried about preeclampsia, but I feel fine.”

  For the first time, Sebastian noticed she was wearing scrubs. “So, you’re a nurse at the clinic?”

  “Yeah, I usually work noon to nine to help get our night doctor up to speed on what happened during the day, but Dr. Marks is only letting me work from five to nine. She’d rather I was on bed rest, but I’m not ready to stop working.”

  “So…so you and my dad are…”

  She held up her left hand. “I’m his wife. Going on two years.” Jenna rubbed her stomach and said in a baby voice, “And this little girl is gonna be your sister, Virginia.”

  “Victoria,” his dad said, sitting next to her and handing her a glass of water.

  “Whatever, we’re still deciding.”

  Bash was still trying to process exactly what was happening. His father, who had just turned fifty, was the father of this woman’s baby? She was almost half his age!

  “I’m sorry, but how old are you?” he asked.

  He could see his dad tense up, but Jenna just laid a hand on his arm.

  “I’m thirty-seven. Are you worried about our age difference?”

  Bash’s face burned. “No, it’s just—I didn’t know anything about you.”

  “Maybe if you’d called, you would have,” his da
d growled.

  “The phone works both ways.”

  “I didn’t know your number.”

  “You could have messaged me on Facebook or Twitter!”

  His dad’s lips thinned. “I don’t mess around with all that online crap.”

  “You’re right,” Jenna jumped in, shooting his dad a warning look. “We should have figured out a way to get in touch with you. But you’re here now. How long are you planning to stay?”

  “I’ll be here through my best friend’s wedding at the end of the month.”

  “Perfect! My due date is July thirty-first, so it will give your father and you time to reconnect, and we can get to know each other.”

  Bash nodded, keeping his thoughts to himself. The biggest thing plaguing him was that Ashlynn had asked about his dad. She’d known he was married and his wife was pregnant.

  And she hadn’t even given him a heads up.

  “Sounds good.”

  Chapter 7

  Ten days later, Ashlynn put the last of her camping gear into the back of her Jeep, checking over her list again. When Troy and Maggie had decided on a joint bachelor/bachelorette party that would be a weekend camping trip, Ashlynn had been stoked. She loved camping, and planned to do a lot of hiking during this one.

  Which had nothing to do with trying to avoid the mouthwatering best man.

  Since the night she’d run out of his house, he hadn’t sought her out or tried to talk to her. She’d told herself that was a good thing, but unfortunately, a small part of her was still disappointed.

  She headed back up her driveway to get Bernie and saw Sebastian walking out of his house, carrying a sleeping bag and a backpack. Was that all he was bringing for the whole weekend?

  Oh well, it wasn’t her problem.

  He pulled out a few minutes before her and she found herself following that foreign little-penis car the whole way up and over the mountain. The campgrounds they were setting up at were right next to a swimming hole and several hiking trails. Karianne and Rebecca Warren, Maggie’s cousin, had the first campsite, and Troy’s two brothers had the second, and their tents were already up and in place. While Sebastian parked his car next to Troy’s truck, Ashlynn pulled her Jeep into the last site before the curve. She waved at Troy and Maggie, who were standing in front of their overshot camper, and let Bernie out of the back.

  Ashlynn laughed as Troy, seeing the big lovable beast, covered the front of his pants with a frying pan.

  “You better not hurt my dog!” she yelled.

  “Better his head than my boys!” he tossed back.

  Maggie intercepted Bernie and gave the slobbering dog a big hug. “I second that. I’m gonna need those at a later date.”

  “Gross,” Ashlynn mumbled.

  She opened the back just as she heard Troy call out a greeting to Sebastian.

  “Hey dude, is that all you brought?”

  “No, I have an ice chest in the back with food and beer,” Sebastian said.

  “Yeah, but where are you gonna sleep? We’re supposed to get thunderstorms tonight and tomorrow.”

  Ashlynn could see the confusion on Sebastian’s face even from fifty feet away. “I thought I was bunking with you. This is a bachelor party right? I figured the girls would be in one campsite and us in the other.”

  Troy set the frying pan down and moved closer to say something softly to Sebastian. He nodded, and headed back toward his car.

  “Where you going?” Troy asked.

  “To go buy a tent somewhere.”

  “You don’t have to do that, Bash.” Maggie glanced Ashlynn’s way before she continued, “Ash’s got plenty of room in her tent, as long as you don’t mind sharing with her disgusting dog.”

  How many times was she going to threaten to kill Maggie before she finally followed through?

  “Naw, it’s cool, I don’t want to inconvenience you,” Sebastian called.

  Her choices were to let Sebastian go and waste another two hours or more trying to get a tent or be the bigger person and let him crash with her. It wasn’t like her eight-person tent wouldn’t fit them comfortably.

  “It’s not a problem. My tent has two separate compartments, so Bernie and I won’t bother you.” Sebastian hesitated, and she added in frustration, “Look, if you want to waste three hours driving back and finding a place that sells tents, go ahead, or you can man up and help me set up camp.”

  Catcalls and ooohs echoed from the rest of their group and Sebastian got back into his car and moved it next to her Jeep. He pulled out his ice chest first, while she opened up the back of her car. Bernie came back and when he shoved his muzzle between Sebastian’s legs, Ashlynn giggled as he pitched forward.

  “Fucking dog, you got problems.”

  “He likes you. You should take it as a compliment,” she said.

  “He seems to like everyone.”

  “No, not really. He hates the FedEx guy.”

  She swore she caught a ghost of a smile on Sebastian’s lips before his expression went stoic once more.

  What the hell was his problem? All she’d done was reject him. Was his ego really so fragile he couldn’t take a girl telling him she wasn’t interested?

  ***

  Once camp was set up, Bash went down to the bathroom to change into his swim trunks, giving Ashlynn the tent for privacy. He still wasn’t sure what the hell to say to her about not giving him a heads up about his dad, but the sting of her silence was a little duller now. Turned out he really liked his dad’s new wife. Even though things between the two men were still tense, Jenna was an excellent buffer. She was funny, and sweet, with just enough attitude to put his dad in his place. In fact, his new stepmother was quite the talker. She’d told him all kinds of surprising things about his dad, including the fact that they were saving up to buy a bigger place, apparently with at least four bedrooms because they wanted more kids.

  And his dad seemed…happy. It was weird seeing him almost mellow in her presence. Bash could barely remember his mom, but when he did, it was always of the two of them fighting.

  He walked back to camp, his flip-flops slapping against the dirt road as he went. He came around the side of her Jeep and picked up his ice chest just as she climbed out of the tent in a simple blue two-piece.

  Holy fucking shit. He remembered the feel of her body when they were teenagers, the weight of her breasts in his hands, and although she was slightly slimmer now, she had the type of body that left him feeling eighteen again.

  She caught him watching her and fiddled with the strap of the halter suit top, making her breasts push up even further over the top.

  “Come on, you two! Daylights a wasting,” Maggie hollered. She stood next to Troy in a white bikini and a black inner tube under her arm.

  Ashlynn bent over and picked up a yellow and blue tube and a black canvas bag as she called her dog’s name. Bash followed behind her, his gaze drawn to the sway of her hips. Her suit started to ride up a bit and he saw her right butt cheek peeking out the bottom.

  It was a really nice view.

  “What’s in the bag?” he asked.

  She glanced at him over her shoulder as she answered. “My medical kit. Epi-pen, antiseptic and sterile instruments in case I need to perform sutures.”

  “You have to do that a lot?”

  “With this crowd? You’d be surprised.”

  He caught up alongside her, his bare arm brushing hers as they walked. He was trying to figure out how to bring up his dad to clear the air, but she beat him to it.

  “I hear you met Jenna.”

  He glanced her way, but she’d slid a pair of black polka dot sunglasses over her eyes.

  “Yeah. Thanks for the heads up, by the way,” he said.

  “Sorry, I didn’t know if it was my place to tell you.”

  “No, I get it, although at the time, I was pretty pissed,” he said. “Turns out I like Jenna better than I do my old man.”

  She flashed him a smile. “Yeah, Jenna is
great. Really good with the patients and knows how to put them at ease. I just wish she’d take care of herself, too. I’ve been trying to get her to go out on maternity leave and she won’t.”

  “Have you mentioned it to my dad?”

  “No offense, but your dad still scares the crap out of me,” she said.

  Bash laughed good-naturedly. “Tell me about it.”

  They reached the sandy beach and Bash set his cooler down at the line of trees.

  “You want a beer?” he asked.

  “Not yet.” She pulled a bottle of spray on sunscreen and held it out to him. “Can you spray me down?”

  Bash couldn’t help wishing she’d brought the lotion he’d need to spread all over her with his bare hands.

  Once she was coated, she took the bottle from him and aimed it at his chest. “Your turn.”

  “I’m good. I don’t burn.”

  She arched a dark brow at him, her full lips twisted mulishly. “As a doctor, I am going to advise you to let me cover you so you don’t end up with skin cancer and ruin that handsome face with deep gouges from having carcinomas removed from your nose and cheeks.”

  “You think I’m pretty vain don’t you?”

  “Your face is your job, isn’t it? Let’s go.”

  He didn’t like the reference; it was too close to what his dad had said about his career. As she sprayed him with the mist, he thought about what he could say to her that wouldn’t make him sound whiny.

  “You know, acting is more than what you look like. You have to remember your lines, work long hours, and I do a lot of my own stunts, so I have to be in peak physical shape.”

  “So I’ve noticed,” she murmured softly.

  He looked over his shoulder at her and her cheeks lit up pink at his grin.

  “I also get hurt. A lot. And I have to be on point for interviews and always watch what I say so it can’t be taken out of context later. Believe me, it’s no cake walk.”

  “Then why do it, if it’s so rough?” she asked.

  Bash turned to face her, his gaze locking with hers.

  “Because it’s what I love.”

  He watched her chest rise and fall as she breathed, the world around them dropping away as he took a step closer, drawn to her by those big brown eyes.